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Thursday, July 26, 2012

El Portal Coffee Roasters - A Little Piece of Veracruz in Seattle

I love visiting coffee shops, especially locally owned ones.
I’d like to talk to you about one that is very close to my heart, El Portal Coffee Roasters. This little coffee shop offers coffee from my hometown Veracruz, Mexico. Some of the things that I really miss from Mexico are the
strong flavor of Mexican food and the strong coffee. When I first heard of this
place I said to myself, “You have to go there” and I did.

From the moment I set foot in this small cozy place, the strong aroma of the Mexican coffee blew me away. My favorite one is the “Lechero”, which is a mix of espresso with steamed milk, a version of a latte here in the United States. In Veracruz there’s a special way of serving this type of coffee that cannot be done here because it’s quite dangerous.

This is how it’s done in Veracruz: in a tall glass a waiter serves two shots of espresso, then pours the steamed milk from up high in the glass. Like it’s shown in the picture below.

Picture from "El Blog del Bavaro"

But it’s not just the coffee or the Mexican pastries that have me coming back to this shop, nope; it’s the warmth of its owners, Ignacio Barrera and his wife Damaris. They have all the charisma that is characteristic of the Veracruzanos, always smiling, always positive, and welcoming. If you are around the Central District, pay this coffee shop a visit. Meanwhile, I’ll have another lechero.

Here are a few pictures of the times I've been there:

Mrs. Damaris owner of El Portal.

A painting of Agustin Lara, famous composer from Veracruz, hangs on their wall